The Red March
by Krista D Lee
Summary: Ganondorf's execution caused much more suffering than anticipated when a chain of unfortunate events spiraled into action. ZeLink and MaLink.


The history of Hyrule is dark and deep, lost forever in the shadows. It is a chain of hatred and evil that cursed this land long before its founding. Interwoven in that forgotten line of history were two men who wandered the opposite ends of the earth, though they would soon meet. These two men shared something in common, not just their similar appearance, but most important of all they shared the same spirit. Not the spirit of the common man, not the spirit a god, but the Spirit of the Hero.

These men could never walk paths linear to each other on account of one thing; one was nothing but a failsafe. The Gods had planned that if the original hero should fall, the other shall rise; If the original hero had risen, the other shall fall. With the execution of the Gerudo King the course was set and the failsafe hero was unbound from his destiny.

But he was then misled by a hand with wicked intentions.

His fall was a story too dark for the public, a story the Royal Family calls The Red March.

* * *

**Chapter One**

"Zelda's Trepidation"

* * *

I

No one idolized the Hero of Time as much as Inspector Sarkis J. Finch. At this point in time there had been eleven books and reports written about the Hero, and Sarkis wrote eight of them. A few of these were particularly popular in schools, and in any other case he would have been asked to make an appearance from time to time to talk about his research to his younger readers, but that would never happen because the populace of Hyrule hated Sarkis J. Finch.

While the Hero slay monsters, Inspector Finch solved crimes, arrested criminals, collected taxes, and performed the occasional execution. He had his own nickname, Sarkis the Merciless, for his cold and aloof behavior to his suspects, or as they called themselves, victims. They quaked at his presence, begged at his feet for understanding, looking up from his perfectly polished shoes to see the softest expression in his baby blue eyes, a flicker of hope burning in their chest before the cuffs went around their wrists, carried off to be locked away behind bars. He didn't do all this with a smile, but he didn't do it with a frown.

The jail resided in the basement of Hyrule Castle where the walls were bricks of cold pavement and the floors were chipped cobblestone. The ceiling dripped even when it wasn't raining, the only light came from three small round windows that could hardly see the sky over the gutter, and three torches in each hall. The beds had more springs than padding and it wasn't known for certain if the food there was actually food. Thanks to Inspector Finch, it was packed with criminals of every crime and misdemeanor, and because of this, it was the area of the most concentrated hatred towards Inspector Finch.

You could call it ironic how only a few floors up was the place where Sarkis held a spotless reputation.

It's not what you know, it's who you know, and Sarkis knew the Royal Family inside and out. Because of the Royal Family he hadn't known hunger since the end of adolescence, he had a stable job and a comfortable bed to sleep in and he intended to keep it that way.

The quality of the food, however, was another matter.

Hidden in the halls of Hyrule Castle, dissolved in the darkness of his private study room, lit only by a single candle on the top right corner of his book-littered desk, Inspector Sarkis J. Finch hunched over as he prodded his fork at the monstrosity that lay on his plate. _What is it_? He wondered, _Oatmeal? Mashed potatoes?_ He brought his face closer to sniff it and thought, _Meatloaf? Whatever it is, this can't possibly be what the Royal Family is eating, is it? _He shook his head at the thought; there was no way the King would allow this in his daughter's stomach. _Right?_ He had been trying to work on writing a case report for the past hour but that smell, texture, and color could not be ignored. But it couldn't be eaten, either.

Something in his mind switched as Sarkis told himself to focus, to leave… whatever that was… alone. So he set the plate on top of a pile of books and looked back down to the report in front of him. He stared at the report for a short moment, but his eyes wandered again to the frame of a pictograph buried in scribbled papers. With a gentle hand he pushed the papers off of the desk as they floated and swayed to the ground like feathers. Lifting the frame, he set it on a clear spot of the desk, free from its cluttered prison. He leaned forward as he fixed his eyes on the pictograph. It was old, the figures that stood there were pure black and white. There were three figures, a young woman, a young man, and a younger Sarkis.

They stood together smiling, except for a puzzled looking Sarkis. The young man, almost a boy, wore a knight's armor. He had blond hair that nearly reached his chin and dark eyes that were wide and full of wonder. He held the other two close to his sides with the widest smile.

On one side was the young woman in a commoner's dress, an unkempt beauty. She did not wear jewels or stand straight and proper and she was not particularly robust. Her light brown hair, which came out as dark in the pictograph, was not pulled up or curled, it fell straight over her shoulders. The beauty was in her calm and quiet expression. Though she looked forward to the camera, those dark eyes went on for miles. Her smile was subtle, as though she knew something she would not tell.

Staring at her was Sarkis in his younger days, about twenty or so. He, too, wore the armor of a knight. Unlike the other two, his skin was dark and his hair curled like black wool, which contrasted almost unnaturally with his bright colored eyes. His face was bare then, Sarkis wouldn't grow the beard he had now until he was in his thirties. His hair had calmed down since then, too. It was almost straight now, sprouting the occasional grays.

From that time, only one thing stayed the same. Around his neck, over the collar of his white shirt, was a tie. It was the same shade of baby blue as his eyes, old, faded, worn and torn at the corners. Though he did not wear it in the pictograph, he remembered wearing it every day when he got home. It was the first thing he owned that he could call fancy. Looking around now at his vast wardrobe of suits, vests, wrinkle free work pants, overcoats, spotless shoes, and hats, the same tie he wore to this day was trash. But at the same time it was his treasure.

A pain in his chests had risen from out of the pictograph. Looking away, he reached in his coat pocket to pull out a flask. It was a dark brown glass with a dirty gleam and a vivid reflection of the candle that lit his desk. In the flask was no potion or milk, it was whisky. In Sarkis' mind, it would be nice to be as sober as the Hero, but it felt even nicer to nock back a few sips. He didn't think about it any more, somewhat of a habit. Or at least he didn't want to think about it.

That was when through the shadows Sarkis heard the pounding of a knock at the doors.

With a sigh and some hesitation, he twisted the flask's lid back on, set down the papers and made his way to the double doors through the maze of crooked bookshelves. The insides were overflowing with books ranging in fiction to nonfiction, topics from quantum physics to everybody poops. The outsides of the bookshelves were plastered with report notes and wanted posters, each wall was covered just the same. The floor crunched like shale as Sarkis' feet stomped on and over flurries of random scrapped notes. This made going to the door and back difficult, but trying to work in an organized environment was even harder.

Like fresh air to an ancient corpse, the light peering through the opening doors clawed at his eyes. Sarkis did not know for how long he had been in his dark study room, but from the stinging and squinting it must have been too long. More light flowed in as the doors swung wide, he squinted down to see two children, about twelve years old, in chain mail tunics and black shorts, each carrying a spear.

One child, a girl, had hair of a silky blond, freshly brushed and trimmed, rosy white skin and large green eyes. She stood with her feet together and with her eyes to the floor like a dog with its tail between its legs. The other, a boy, had a head of messy auburn hair, sun burnt skin and a scar across his left eye that made it appear as though someone had twisted his face. His feet were apart, his arms were crossed, and he looked up at Sarkis with an electric glare with his one good eye.

"Astor," Sarkis looked to the boy, then to the girl, "Joan, I told you two I would be working today."

"You!" The boy shoved a stubby finger in front of Sarkis' face, "Where were you last night?!"

With a puzzled frown, Sarkis looked up from the child's finger to a tall figure standing behind the children with her hands on their shoulders. Standing with all the confidence you would expect from a Sheikah was Impa, tall, lean, and silent. She looked at Sarkis with a serene smile.

"Calm down, Astor, it's alright," she patted his messy hair.

"Impa! I wasn't expecting you…" Sarkis said breathlessly, "And you're not with the Princess… What's the occasion?"

"Mr. Finch," Impa said, "These two little knights are your trainees, correct?"

Nodding, Sarkis admitted, "The King assigned me to teach them in the law and combat, yes."

Astor grumbled, "Hardly a trainer, you haven't taught us anything in days. And you smell like alcohol again!"

Joan frowned to Astor, "Oh, be quiet! You know better than to be rude to Master Sarkis!"

"I thought I told you kids I've been busy with my work as an Inspector," Sarkis sighed, "I'm a part time trainer, full time Inspector, not the other way around."

"Exactly! Besides, he's been letting us do some of the night watch around the castle with all the grown up knights! That's something!"

"I'm glad you brought that up, Joan," Impa looked down to her, "This is a good chance to tell Mr. Finch what happened."

"Oh," the girl's voice went quiet as she looked back to the floor, "Well, uh…"

Sarkis' eyes narrowed, "What did you two do this time?"

Astor blurted, "We didn't mean to! We were only trying to help!"

Joan followed, "It all happened so fast!"

Lost, Sarkis looked back to Impa.

"It happened last night," Impa said, "They were doing their rounds in the night watch around the castle courtyard, as you had instructed, when they heard a signal of distress coming from Princess Zelda's room."

Joan shivered, "She was screaming really loud! And there was a bright light coming out of her room! A really bright light!"

Astor seemed just as chilled, "I thought she was dying!"

Sarkis spoke under his breath, "Something happened to the Princess…?"

"That's what they thought," Impa continued, "They attempted to get into the Princess's bedroom to aid her, but the door was locked," she looked back down to the children, who looked at their feet, "Would you like to tell him what happened next?"

"We… we were just trying to help," Astor mumbled, "We didn't know she was just having a vision…"

"She sounded like she was in trouble, I didn't know what else to do," Joan did the same.

Tapping his foot, Sarkis crossed his arms, "What happened next?"

Neither of the children spoke.

"If you won't tell him, I will," Impa told them with a stoic face.

Silent, still.

Shrugging her shoulders, Impa said, "Alright then. Mr. Finch, while in good intentions, your trainees chopped up and busted down the Princess's door."

"We're sorry," Joan's spirit sank, "We didn't know she was having a vision!"

Sarkis looked up to the arched ceiling of white marble with a sigh, "I suppose there should be some sort of punishment for that."

Their shoulders crawling with shivers, the children's faces went pale.

"That wasn't my intention at all, actually," Impa said as she placed her hands back on the children's shoulders, followed by sighs of relief from the trainees, "They were quite brave, Mr. Finch. …Naïve, yes, but very brave. They did all this with only the Princess's safety in mind. You should be proud."

"I suppose that was brave… Not many people would willingly jump into danger…." Pondering in a moment of silence, Sarkis sighed as he looked down at the children, who looked back up at him with puppy dog eyes, so scared and so hopeful that Sarkis would find all of the mercy and understanding that Impa had found. "But it was ignorant of you. I told you Princess Zelda has visions in her sleep! There will be no more night watch until I say so. Until I finish my next case you'll be shining your upperclassmen's armor, and when I say shining I mean I better be able to see the pores of my face in the reflection."

Joan sank to the floor, "Yes, Master Sarkis…"

"What?" Astor burst, "That's bull! You said she has visions in her sleep but you never said she screams!"

"Because," speaking slow, Sarkis looked to Impa, "She usually doesn't... not in years." His eyes went back to the children, "Besides, you should have gone for help. Had the cause of her screams been an enemy, you would have been killed."

Astor proudly lifted his spear, "I coulda taken 'em! I'm tougher than I look!"

Sarkis continued, "Impa is on constant watch for Princess Zelda's safety. If it was an enemy that Impa could overpower, there would have been no screaming. But there was. And if it really had been an enemy too powerful for even Impa, you would have been brought down in mere seconds. What you did is brave, but you can't win battles on bravery alone. Perhaps you're just too young to understand how vulnerable you are. I'll be sure to make that our next lesson."

"But that's no fair! Impa, tell him that's no fair!"

Impa sighed, "He's your trainer, Astor, not me."

With crossed arms, Astor looked away with a frown, "Hmph!"

"Now that's out of the way, I have something else for you three," Impa took a step back into the hall, "The King has summoned you, Mr. Finch, and would like for you to report immediately."

The children's heads perked.

"The King?" Joan's eyes sparkled.

The anger in Astor vanished into wide eyes, "No way! Can we come, Sarkis? Can we? I wanna meet the King!"

Sarkis pondered, "That depends… does it have to do with last night?"

"Yes and no, but I'd say it's in your best interest to keep your trainees with you." She turned and winked to the children, "Don't worry, you won't be getting in any more trouble. Now, if you'll follow me."

* * *

II

The marble halls glistened in the soft crème light that flowed from the stain glass windows, each one a single panel story of green clad heroes from legend. The light smoothed the dazzling carpet of red velvet that the four trailed. The hallways seemed endless, the staircases wound in almost never ending cycles, a maze of calm colored stone, velvet, arched ceilings, and echoing taps of footsteps.

"I understand that you're busy," Impa said quietly as Astor and Joan skipped far ahead of her and Sarkis, "But you need to keep a better eye on your trainees."

"I do my best, but it's hard to juggle those kids and my job. I really am sorry about the door, Impa."

"That's not what I mean," Impa's face had gone flat. Her eyes narrowed and the confident smile had disappeared, "Knights on watch at Castle Town have been disappearing at night as if into thin air."

"Still?" Sarkis frowned, "I thought we had someone on that."

"They disappeared as well…"

"Damn," Sarkis looked to the passing stain glass windows, thinking of the hero as each one went by, "Any leads on the cause?"

Impa shook her head.

"I see. So we're back to square one."

Astor's voice echoed through the marble halls, faded from the distance, "Hey, slowpokes, let's hurry it up, I'm not getting any younger over here!" He turned down the hall into the corridor of a staircase that flowed in spirals, his voice becoming fainter and fainter as he went down, "Whoa, Joan, look at this! They've got paintings of the entire royal family in here!"

"Wait, I wanna see!" Joan giggled as she ran after him, disappearing into the corridor, "Cool! They even have Queen Zelda the First! Did you know she was a Goddess in human form?"

"Whaaat? No way, that can't be true!"

"It is, I learned that two days ago! And the guy standing next to her is the Hero of the Sky! It looks like all the Royal Family here are painted with their bodyguards!"

"Look, there's a Sheikah with this lady!" Astor blurted, his laughter fading as they went down, "Look at this old man here! He looks like he's been holding in a huge fart!"

Joan gasped, "That's the Hero of Man! He became King after saving the country a long, long time ago! He was so cool!"

There were easygoing smiles on Impa and Sarkis' face. Though the children had disappeared from sight, they could hear the smiles on their faces and the fascination in their eyes.

Impa sighed, "How nice to know that even in the world we live in there are still children who can find the wonder in things."

"It is nice… But scary as well," Sarkis said, "They don't know how naïve they are to the dark parts of life, but the darkness in life know how naïve they are. Kids are so much more fragile than they think."

"Let them be naïve. Everyone needs a brighter time to look back on," Impa looked forward with a faded stare, "To look back and see nothing but suffering… That's no way to live," she glanced to Sarkis, "I think you could understand that."

"…Yes," Sarkis spoke softly, "I… guess I could…"

* * *

III

The faint strum of a flailing harp floated from the other side of the grand mahogany doors that stretched from the blue tile of the floor to the arched ceiling painted with clouds, angels, sages, and goddesses. A light glowed from the frosted windows that overlooked the castle garden, blooming with new flowers of red, yellow, and orange in patches of crisp green grass.

Astor and Joan gaped.

Clasping her hands together, she spoke under her breath, "What a beautiful song…"

Astor raised his eyebrows, "That is a big door."

"Try not to chop it down," Sarkis mumbled as Impa knocked on the mahogany.

Impa's voice was strong and confident enough to phase well through the door, "Your Majesty, I've come with Inspector Finch and his trainees."

There was a silent pause. The music had stopped, the children held their breath, and Sarkis and Impa stood tall with their hands behind their backs. Then with a creaking like the sound of breaking bones from the hinges of the doors, it budged followed by a great swing as the doors opened like a bird's wings.

The song had resumed, amplified by the wide structure of the throne room. It bounced crisper and smoother off of the rounded walls and the muraled ceiling. Through the vibrations of Zelda's Lullaby now stood seven people, including Impa, Sarkis, and the children. Standing tall at the top of throne's platform was the only one who was not entranced enough by the music to let Sarkis' presence go unnoticed.

Under his breath, Sarkis scoffed his name, "Gaede…"

Sarkis knew him by his name, others knew him as the King's bodyguard.

Though he was a handful of years younger than Sarkis, Gaede was taller and more muscular than him. His hair was a silver mess that hardly uncovered his tired but piercing red eyes, the rest of his face was covered by a dark grey-ish blue mask that blended into his outfit. He crossed his arms as the King beside him smiled softly at the lower level of the throne room where Princess Zelda stood with the Royal Family's Lyre strumming at her fingertips.

The Princess had heard and performed this song so many times she was able to do it with her eyes closed. It was sung to her on her first day in this world, and almost every night since. Now she was a beautiful young woman of eighteen. She almost looked like a painting, her gold hair seemed to glow, her skin was as smooth and clear as porcelain, and the pink dress she wore was of unwrinkled silk. But it wasn't only her appearance that made her such a beautiful young lady; she had an aura of a gentle but strong power like golden summer sunlight, a power that could create and destroy. It was an aura that drew people's attention like the sound of laughter. This aura had also belonged to Zelda's mother, and her mother before her.

The children were entranced by this aura, standing still and wide eyed as though the air had been taken from their lungs.

But Gaede paid no attention. From the top of the platform where the throne sat, he gazed down with subtle caution at Sarkis. Sarkis glared back.

Zelda opened her cherry blue eyes with the last strum of the harp as gentle claps came from the hands of Impa and the King. Even more enthusiastic claps came from the hands of the children. She looked up atop of the platform to her father with a sense of pride as she watched him praise before she turned her head to the doors where Sarkis still stood. He clapped for Zelda, too. With her attention, the King's attention also turned.

"Well done, your grace," Sarkis bowed slightly, "Perfectly played."

Zelda gave a polite nod of the head, "Thank you kindly, Mr. Finch."

"Ah, Sarkis," the King spoke as Impa joined the Princess's side, "I'm glad I could speak with you so soon. I hope you weren't busy."

"It's no trouble at all, your majesty," Sarkis bowed on one knee, "I'll drop whatever I must to meet your command."

The children raised their eyebrows at Sarkis, they had never seen him bow to anyone. Suddenly, Sarkis turned his head to them with a fierce stare, "If I bow, you bow," he whispered.

With a sense of urgency, the children dropped to their knees as fast as gravity let them. Joan stooped on one knee with her face to the floor, Astor dropped both knees with his arms out straight and his face on the floor.

Gaede laughed.

"There's no need to do that," laughed the King, "I know you far too well to let you treat me like… well… Royalty."

Joan looked up curiously at Sarkis, "How do you know the King that well?"

"A long time ago," Gaede answered before Sarkis could, "Sarkis had a job at the castle much more important than Inspector."

Astor's laugh muffled on the floor, he asked, "You got demoted, Master Sarkis?"

Sarkis frowned, "No, I didn't get demoted."

"What was your job?" Joan asked as Sarkis stood.

He hesitated, then answered slowly, "…I was… the young prince's attendant."

"You were a nanny?!" Astor's laugher resumed.

"I was an attendant."

"Haha! You were a nanny!"

"Attendant!"

"You mean," Joan spoke, "You were like Impa… and that gray haired guy up there!"

Sarkis nodded, "Yes. I was just like them."

"What happened?" Joan asked.

The air in the room became silent in an instant. Gaede glanced over to the King, who seemed to have lost his jolly nature. Lifting a hand, Impa placed it on the Princess's shoulder, her face gone melancholy.

"Master Sarkis?" Joan spoke softly as she looked up at him. His eyes had gone distant as though lost in memories and the stern air around him had decayed into something sad.

Not lifting his eyes, he asked the King, "…For what purpose did you summon me…?"

The King spoke with a solemn tone, "There is a tragedy in the making, we believe, in a small town by the forest border. I'm assigning you, and your trainees, to pack your things and keep the peace there."

Astor gasped with disgust, "Move?!" He lifted his head from the floor, "Just like that?!"

"I'll do what I must to serve the King," Sarkis turned to Astor, "And you must, too." His attention turned back to the King, "But may I ask why?"

"Why?" The King echoed.

"What makes you believe there's something so wrong with a small town that you must send me? …Out of curiosity."

Looking down to Zelda, the King stayed silent. Sarkis followed his gaze to the Princess. Her eyes were wide, her smile was gone, her stare was distant, and her face had gone white.

Sarkis remembered asking Impa if his summoning was related to the happenings of the night before.

"Yes and no," she had said.

The Princess spoke quietly from her harp, "I believe you've been told of last night's events?"

Sarkis nodded. The children seemed to sink nervously.

"What I saw last night," her eyes were distant, "was something more terrible than anything I've ever seen. It was unlike any other vision where I see symbols. I saw the event itself taking place…"

Holding her breath, she stopped, covering her mouth with her gloved hand.

"Please tell me what you saw," Sarkis beckoned.

She nodded, "It started out black. All I could hear were voices, wicked screams and shouting of countless women. They spoke at the same time, I couldn't make out anything they were saying, but I could feel their immense lust for tears, pain, and bloodshed. Then there was a village, the village my father speaks of. It was peaceful at first, nothing seemed wrong. But a violent wind blew by. It wasn't just any wind, a single gust blew a house to rubble, another split a gash into the earth. The villagers started running like a coop of spooked cuccos, but there was nowhere they could go. The wind continued to blow, and it cut down the villagers like a blade to a stalk of bamboo. Men, women, children, elders, they were all murdered in cold blood and I could see it all! A young mother tried to hide with her child behind the trunk of a tree, but the tree was cut down and it fell on top of them, a man ran from place to place looking for his wife and he found her without a head, an elderly couple knelt in their sanctuary, praying to the Gods for mercy when the ceiling came down on them, a child no older than your trainees hid in the rubble of his home, beckoning to his sister to hide with him when she was cut down in before his very eyes! There was no hope, they were all-!"

Tears fell to the floor where Zelda stood. Her shoulders shook as she covered her face with her hands, sobbing, "Those poor, poor people…"

The children stared wide eyed at the Princess, who just moments ago was so bright and warm, was now broken down in horror. Sarkis stood in a state of shock and disbelief as he ran through his head what he had been told.

"A… wind…?" He mumbled under his breath.

Joan whispered to Astor, "No wonder she was screaming last night…"

"And then," Zelda continued as she attempted to collect herself, "I saw my father." She looked up at his throne where he sat, tense and wide eyed, "And he… then he, too… was…"

Once more she had fallen apart into unstoppable sobs as she leaned into Impa's arms who gently brushed her hair with her hands.

"I'll pack my things tonight," he spoke, "But I need to at least finish my current case."

"There's no time," Zelda sobbed breathlessly, "For all we know the place could be in flames as we speak!"

"I could get this case wrapped up by tonight, your grace," Sarkis said gently, "It won't make a bit of difference. Just a report of a stolen wallet."

"Who is the accused?" Asked the King.

"The Rancher's daughter."

The King pondered, "…Talon's girl, hmm…?"

Joan spoke with a tone of pity, "It'll be OK, Princess. We'll make sure that never happens."

"Yeah," Astor held up his spear again, "No one is hurting no one on my watch! Believe that!"

The Princess wiped her tears, "Thank you… Thank you so much," her lips trembled into a smile, her eyes showing the littlest traces of hope, "If only every soldier were as brave as you two…"

Blushing, Astor scratched the back of his head, "Aah, it's nothing! Anything for you- err-umm- for the Royal Family…!"

"I can't believe I'm going to be moving across the country," Joan glowed, "This is going to be such an adventure!"

"Yeah, I guess it is a bit exciting," Astor nodded, "Just you, me, and Master Sarkis against the unknown-!"

"And Gaede," the King cut in. The children and Sarkis' heads perked up, "I've assigned Gaede to escort you there."

Frowning, Sarkis looked up to Gaede whose eyes seemed to smile mockingly in return. Sarkis spoke in an annoyed tone, "Your Majesty…Wouldn't you rather keep your bodyguard with you?"

"I've talked about it with both Gaede and Zelda, and we feel it is for the best. The force from my daughter's vision is far from weak, and Gaede, along with yourself, may just be enough power to counter and overcome the danger ahead," as the King continued, Sarkis turned his head away with a frown, "When we feel all is well we will summon him back to the castle to resume his work here."

"Holy mother of Nayru," Joan gasped, "How are we going to fit four people into a wagon?"

"Five people," Gaede continued.

"Five?" Sarkis grimaced.

"Yes, five," the Sheikah man sighed, "Aren't you forgetting someone?"

The children looked at each other, at Zelda and Impa, and back at the King and Gaede.

Astor tilted his head, "Who?"

The palm of Gaede's hand slapped against his forehead.

"Come to think of it," Impa said, "There was a third trainee that knocked down that door last night…"

"Oh!" Astor gasped, "I forgot about her! What's her name again?"

Joan rambled, "Umm, her name… uh…"

"You guys are hopeless," Gaede shook his head, "You forgot Mardra again."

* * *

IV

It was sunset when a covered wagon grew smaller against the horizon of Hyrule Field as Zelda watched from the balcony of her bedroom tower. Behind her, Impa watched the same wagon as it made its way to Lon Lon Ranch.

"I'm not one to doubt you, Princess," Impa said as Zelda leaned on the balcony railing, "But you sent mere children to the site of a sure massacre. Why?"

Zelda's eyes were fixed on the silhouette of the plateau where Lon Lon Ranch rested, "I've seen those children in my dreams as young adults. Whatever I send them out there to do, I know they'll make it back."

A sigh of relief came from Impa, "Good. And Sarkis?"

The wind swayed her hair and the ruffled ends of her white night dress as her eyes drooped to Castle Town where the sunlight got dimmer and the house lights became brighter. Her mouth would not open to speak.

"…I see…"

Zelda spoke softly, "What else can I do?" Impa looked down to her curiously, "What else other than telling people what to do? What else other than standing here… If I could, I would leave right now to get all those people out of that town, but I'm nailed here. I don't even know if what I saw was a vision of what's to come or if it was happening as I saw it… I…" Resting her frowning face into the palms of her hands, Zelda's words faded.

"You know," Impa said, "I'm sure we could get some extra help."

Zelda turned to her, "What do you mean?"

Impa smirked, "I'm sure you know… One word, Princess, one word from you is all he needs and I'm sure he'll come riding back."

Turning back to Hyrule Field, Zelda watched the distance, "Perhaps you're right… it may be time…"

Nodding, Impa turned to her bedroom door and walked in, "I'll send word out immediately."

Zelda smiled at the horizon with hope, "Yes… It's time to bring Link home."


End file.
